Teachers Roger and Kelly Dawes found romance in their school dining room nearly 40 years ago.

And now both have finally said goodbye to the classroom after chalking up an incredible 74 years of teaching between them.

Chemistry teacher Roger and art specialist Kelly, both 61, from Streetly, spent 38 of those combined years at Stockland Green Technology College, in Slade Road, Erdington, before retiring this week.

The teachers fell in love following a joint dinner duty at their first school, St George’s Secondary in Newtown, in 1969.

They married three years later, but then left the scene of their romance to pursue separate teaching careers.

It wasn’t until 1989 that the couple were reunited at work as well as at home, when Kelly who became head of art at Stockland Green a year earlier, was joined by Roger in the chemistry department when his existing school in Kingstanding closed.

During their distinctive teaching careers in Birmingham, which included spells at Cockshut Hill in Yardley and the then Archbishop Williams in Tile Cross, Roger taught football to former Aston Villa and England midfielder Gordon Cowans, while Kelly taught art to members of Musical Youth.

Roger, who is auctioning his collection of 150 novelty ties in aid of Cancer Research UK, said of their first meeting: “We virtually ignored each other for a year and then we were put on dinner duty together. We found we had a lot of interests in common and it just blossomed.”

Things progressed when lifelong Derby County fan Roger invited Kelly to a game.

Kelly, an advanced skills teacher who took a six-year career break to bring up daughter Harriett, now 31, and Edward, 29, said: “Working together has never been a problem. It only means one car and we have lunch together with the staff.”

And Roger added: “We will both really miss the camaraderie that we have with all the teachers and staff.”

The couple plan to visit their son and daughter-in-law in Australia and see Europe by train.